Us Against Her World
by Ifit'sNotBaroque
Summary: Freshman year of college did not fare well for Isabella, but with a new found hope and the steadiness of Ferb, things start turning around. However, the pain of freshman year will not simply be wiped away. When life gets crazy again, will she go back to her unhealthy coping mechanisms or find joy? Ferbella WARNING: mild mentions of self-harm and domestic violence(necessary T).
1. Chapter 1

**PLEASE READ FIRST!**

 **Hello world of FanFic, it's been too long. There are a few important notes to begin this story:**

 **1) For the purposes of this story the kids were 11 in the show, because I want Candace to be 4 years older than the crew. Just to make her place in life make sense.**

 **2) As mentioned in the story description, this story is pretty heavy. The important part to mention is that some things I am writing about I have experienced, self-harm is something I have come close to doing, and some are a beyond my understanding. I'm not going to disclose publically all that I have or have not experienced, however, if I write something you have a question about, please feel free to PM me and I am happy to discuss. Especially if you believe I inaccurately or inappropriately described something, as I really don't want that.**

 **3) I reiterate, there are mentions, though not explicit descriptions, of self-harm and domestic violence. Consider this warning and if the mention of it happening and some psychological reactions to it are triggers, I suggest not reading this story. My goal is to talk about tough things in a respectful manner.**

 **4) I have been in an emotional, spiritual (I am a Christian), and writing rut. This is largely a way to help me get out of that place. If the spiritual thing scares you off, don't worry, it won't be present in the story; it's more of author honesty.**

 **Anyways, that was long, but given the content of my story, it's important to me. So please enjoy!**

 **All characters belong to Dan Povenmire and Jeff Marsh and I'm thankful for the creative medium that FanFic provides.**

Isabella's POV:

I sat perfectly still. I never much cared much for the long ride between college and home and it was made even worse when Mama couldn't get work off to pick me up. Thankfully, my roommate, Molly, lives near school and was able to take the stuff I couldn't fit into my luggage. Even more thankfully, she would be visiting in June, so I wouldn't have to go too long without some of my things that I really did want to bring home, but just couldn't fit. I had changed a lot over freshman year, and despite my weariness towards riding alone on a bus, this was the first chance I had to reflect upon all the change.

I went into freshman year full of life and ready to take on the world. My expectation was that my freshman roommate and I would be the best of friends and that Public Relations would be the perfect major for me. I dreamed of romance—heck, I dreamed of romance wherever I went before my horrible first semester of college! I thought that freshman year was the beginning of the rest of my life: a life away from dreams of Phineas and the wild inventions of him and Ferb.

When I thought about Ferb, my reflections on freshman year shifted. I knew he had been suspicious of my horrible semester at Christmas break, but my goal of Christmas break was to make sure no one, and I mean NO ONE had any idea what happened to me my first semester of college. But Ferb, dear Ferb—if I can call him that—had figured it out and made me tell him everything. I told him all about my crappy roommate and how I had to switch rooms after Thanksgiving because of how bad it got. And the boy that I went on a few dates with, who did not agree on how slowly I wanted to take the relationship. Lastly, I told him my major crisis when I got kicked out of my major—yes, first semester—for failing both communications and Intro to Public Relations. I took some time to think about it and changed my major to Human Services, on the track leading to social work. Everyone knew I changed my major, but they figured it was because I realized that social work was a better fit for me.

I absently wiped a tear, hoping the man I was sitting next to wouldn't acknowledge me. As my luck would have it, he turned, "Are you okay, miss?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lied, just as I had rehearsed in front of my mirror, "I got an eyelash in my eye."

"Ah, sorry to bother you," he replied.

I held in my sigh of relief. He seemed kind enough, but I could never be too sure after everything at the beginning of the year. I glanced down at my scarred wrist and sighed, what has happened to me?

Spring semester had been so much better and I decided to embrace the positive change. I donated my long hair at the beginning of the semester, getting it cut to a bob. I didn't like the bob much, but now that it's grown to my shoulders, I love it. I also got my ears pierced a second time. I didn't always wear my contacts anymore, either. I still wear them a lot, but I wear my glasses at least one day per week. I started scratching at my scars. Molly had caught me hurting myself and took me to the counseling center, which helped a lot. At first I was annoyed at her, but I am living with a psychology major, so I should expect it a little. She also was doing it not to treat me like a future patient, but to truly be a good friend. She really helped me and I haven't tried to hurt myself since February.

That's the one thing Ferb does not know about. And I intend on hiding it. I'll usually put make up over it, but today I'll just put a sweater on when I'm about to get off the bus. Ferb is picking me up from the bus station and he is the most observant, so I have to be very careful if I want to hide this from him. I took out my phone and looked at my background: a picture of Ferb and I laughing at each other all decked out for prom. When I was eleven, I never would have imagined myself going to senior prom with Ferb, but it was just as magical as I ever imagined senior prom would be. I didn't get a kiss or lose my shoe at midnight like Cinderella, but it was wonderful. That memory made me smile brighter than any other did.

After another two hours, we finally pulled up at the bus station I'd be getting off at. It was in a town called Millersville, about ten miles from Danville. I put on my sweater, then pulled my bags off the bus in a less than graceful fashion. I looked up to see my favorite Brit laughing at me. "Ferb!" I dropped my luggage a few feet away from the bus and ran into his arms, "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too, Bella. Please tell me the spring has been better than the fall," he….almost pleaded, actually, which I never thought I'd hear from Ferb. He talks much more than he used to, but only around his family, me, and a few of our close friends. Though the last one is still a rarity. "Bella?" He said again, pulling me out of my trance.

"Sorry, Ferb, I'm in a very reflective mood today."

"How about I get your stuff to the car and we can talk more in there," he suggested. I nodded, yet again distracted. I stayed close by Ferb's side, hoping he sensed that something was wrong. And by something, I mean, I was currently looking at the guy I dated first semester, Ray. Death-gripping Ferb's arm was all I could do not to hold myself together.

To my horror, Ray looked up and saw me, "Belle, how have you been?" He ran up to me, arms open wide for a hug, which caused me to grip Ferb's shoulder more firmly.

"Bella, who is this?" Ferb asked quietly. All I did in response was bury my head in his shoulder and shake my head violently. Ferb got the message, "Excuse me, but we really must go." With that, he picked up my luggage and we walked to the car.

I glanced back and to my horror, he was following us, "Ferb," I whispered, panic-stricken.

When we finally made it to the car, Ferb locked the doors before pulling me into a tight hug, "Was that Ray?" I nodded my head. "I'm so sorry, Bella…What can I do for you?"

"Just hold me," I whispered.

Ferb's POV:

I had never seen Isabella this broken. I held her in my arms and gently rubbed my hand up and down her one arm. "We'll take a scenic route to Danville. If he tries to follow us in a car, I can lose him. He won't know where you live, I promise."

"He knows I live in Danville, Ferb…"

"Does he know how to get there?" I shook my head. "Do you think he may have been here for another reason?"

"His mom lives in the Tri-State Area."

I made my mouth into an 'o' but no sound came out. I hate seeing her cry and in this moment, more than ever before, I wished I could make some sort of invention to fix all of her problems. Her form was so small in my arms, I am fairly certain she had lost weight during freshman year. I kept rubbing her arm until I felt something rough on the smooth skin of her left wrist, "Bella…"

She looked up at me with horror in her eyes. Not the same horror that was there when she saw Ray, but it broke my heart to see that look. She pulled her left arm from me, but I was quicker and grabbed it, pulling it towards me. I gently pushed up her sleeve to reveal scars on her wrist. Scars that could only be put there by her own hand. "Bella, when did this happen?" I asked softly, trying not to scare her and to keep my anger in check. It wasn't anger towards her, necessarily. In a small way it was, but I was mostly angry at myself that I didn't see this sooner that I couldn't help her.

"I-it hasn't happened since F-F-February…V-Valentine's Day to b-b-b-be exact," she admitted.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.

"I-I…I didn't want you to be disappointed in me," she whispered, evening her voice. She sat up, "Can we start driving? I'll talk to you, Ferb, I just…I need to be away from… _him._ "

"Of course," I replied. I kissed her temple before pulling away from her to start the car. "I'm sorry the beginning of your summer has been so rough," I said slowly, pausing to formulate my next thought well, "I'm not disappointed in you, Bella. I'm a bit disappointed that this happened and that you didn't tell me. How long did this go on?"

"It started the first time Ray…the first time he hit me. I went to the bathroom that night and…yeah."

"Who found out?" I knew Bella wouldn't be able to get herself out of a rut. Someone must have discovered what was going on.

"Molly. She dragged me—lovingly—to the counseling center. Well, Carrie knew about it, but she didn't say anything."

"What an awful person," I scoffed.

"We were never friends, just roommates," Isabella defended.

"That's no excuse," I replied firmly. I reached my hand over and held hers, forcing myself not to touch her wrist again.

"I…"

"Shh…" I said quietly, "you don't need to say anything."

The rest of the car ride was pretty quiet. Thankfully, Ray did not try to follow us in his car. Perhaps he does not have one, but I was glad to just get Bella home. I could hardly believe how much has changed; some for the best, but Bella losing her innocence does not fit into the latter category. "Do you want to come over to my house so you are not alone?"

"Could you just come over to mine?" she requested, "I don't want to be around your whole family right now…too much explaining."

"Bella, would it be such a bad idea for you to explain things?"

"Yes," she insisted.

Isabella's POV:

Well, so much for Ferb not finding out, but on my dead body will his family find out about fall semester and everything that came from it.

"Bella, I don't think us going to your house is a good idea."

"Why not?" I asked.

"I just…I don't, Bella, could you please just come to my house?"

"How about we take my stuff back to my house and I clean up a little? We can go to your house in a few minutes."

"Alright." Ferb complied. When we got inside, he sat on the living room couch and I went upstairs. I washed my face and put a bit of foundation and cover up over my scar. Then I put on a pair of denim shorts and a tank top and searched for a sheer long sleeved shirt to help cover my arm, but still keep me cool. About fifteen minutes after arriving home, Ferb and I walked across the street to his house.

"Isabella!" I heard Candace's excited voice. We had gotten rather close in the past few years. In fact, I'm going to be a bridesmaid in her wedding that's finally happening in June. That's actually why Molly is coming up. Turns out, she's Jeremy's cousin. Candace pulled me into a tight hug, "So I hear your best friend at college is Jeremy's cousin?"

"Yeah," I replied, "Molly is really great."

"I've met her once; I liked her a lot. I'm glad you found such a good friend." Candace pulled me by both arms to the couch, "How was the rest of freshman year?"

The last time we had talked, I was in a bit of a rut. Candace doesn't know quite as much as Ferb, but she knows a decent bit, "I'm doing better. I blocked Ray on everything. And Molly is a much better roommate than Carrie was, so I'm much more…stable."

"What's wrong, Isabella?"

"We had a run in with Ray," Ferb cut in.

"Ferb!"

"Candace deserves to know," he said simply.

"What'd he do?" Candace asked, this time directed at Ferb.

"Talked to her, tried to hug her…he followed us to the car, but left once we drove off."

"That's so frustrating," Candace hugged me again, turning her full attention to me, "I'm sure you'll find someone who deserves you, Isabella. Or…have you already found someone?" She had this mischievous grin on her face and Ferb gasped.


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's chapter 2 for you guys. Thanks for the follows last time. I hope you enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I have no ownership over these beautiful characters and my writing is simply for fun and self-prescribed therapy to get through the craziness of life.**

Ferb's POV:

I couldn't believe Candace just asked that, with that smug grin and quick glance towards me. Isabella raised an eyebrow at my gasp. "I had a chill," I smoothly lied. Candace was one of three people—the others being Phineas and Baljeet—that I had revealed my feelings for Bella to. Every time I think about my feelings for her, I realize that those words do not suffice. Isabella is…to put it simply, the most incredible person I have ever met—not to mention most beautiful. I knew she questioned my overprotectiveness, but I doubted she was ready for me to reveal such a thing to her yet.

I heard a coughing sound, "Are you listening to me, Ferb?" Candace asked. I shrugged. "I said that you're full of crap."

"Excuse me?" I successfully hid the quiver that was in my throat from my voice.

"You didn't have a chill."

Isabella, bless the dear soul, blurt out, "I haven't found anyone!" Candace and I looked at her with questioning in our eyes. "To answer your question; I haven't found anybody yet. Still…waiting for the right timing, I suppose."

I took that as opportunity to get the heck away from there. I figured I'd go find Phineas. I found him in his usual state: under the tree and bent over a blueprint. It only got more intense since he went to school for engineering. "Oh, hey Ferb! Is Bella inside?" I gave him a thumb's up. "Why aren't you with her? Isn't part of winning a girl's heart spending time with her?"

"Candace," I replied with a slight grimace.

"Oh, she did it again?" Phineas asked, knowing exactly how much Candace loves a good meddle. I nodded.

"I'll have to talk to her about that sometime. I don't mind a little bit of meddling, but she's a bit ridiculous."

"In her defense, she did get Stacy and Coltrane to talk again after that large spat."

"I'm not sure why you're defending her when you clearly want to pull her aside and give her a piece of your mind."

"I just…I would like to request courting Bella at some point this summer, but not through Candace."

Phineas chuckled, "You are so formal sometimes, Ferb. But yeah, I get what you're saying. I would have hated if Candace asked Adyson out for me."

I chuckled, "That would have been quite unfortunate, however, Candace was at college for most of that, so it was not much of a concern."

"How was the ride back?"

"Rough, honestly."

"What do you mean?" Phineas, the lucky chap, had very little awareness of the darkness of life. To him, any time with a friend—and even more so, any time with the girl of your affections—was a good time.

"Bella had a bit of a rough day. She ran into someone and it threw her into quite the emotional state…but you didn't hear that from me." I replied.

"Right."

At that moment, Adyson walked into the yard, "Hey Phineas!" He stood for her to greet him with a kiss. As she hung off him afterwards, she tacked on, "Hi Ferb." I responded with a short wave.

It wasn't that I didn't like Adyson, per se, I just never thought she and Phineas were the best fit. Phineas probably knows this by now as I have never said more than "excuse me" or "thank you" in her presence. Adyson is aggressive and insensitive. She's also incredibly bossy. It didn't take long for her to not so subtly attempt to begin a make-out session with Phineas, which I had no desire to witness, so I figured now was as good as any time for a nice, long nap.

Isabella's POV:

After Ferb left, Candace went ballistic. Okay…maybe ballistic is a bit of an exaggeration, but she sure was enthusiastic, "What do you mean by timing, Isabella? Who is it that you like?"

"It's nobody…" I mumbled, which was as big of a lie as I had ever told. Because Ferb is most certainly not nobody.

"If it were nobody, you'd be able to look me in the eye. It's Ferb, isn't it?"

I looked at her in shock, but I quickly recovered, "Shhh, before he hears you."

"It is Ferb!"

I slammed my hand over her mouth and whispered, "Candace, please stop talking so loudly. I can't have him hearing you proclaim the fact that I like him to the entire Tri-State area!"

"But the whole Tri-State area can know?"

"I mean, it knew about my crush on Phineas, what difference does it make if everyone except the subject of my affections knows again?" I bitterly replied.

"Isabella, you're thinking about this all wrong. It would be a wonderful advancement if Ferb became aware of your feelings."

"You can't tell him, Candace."

"But you should," she replied.

"No, Candace," I said firmly. "I cannot tell Ferb that I have feelings for him because I can't have my heart broken again."

"Ferb is not going to break your heart, Isabella."

"You can't know that."

"I can pretty much guarantee it, actually."

I paused to ponder that statement and remembered that Ferb and Candace's relationship had been improving a great deal lately, which meant she may know something. "Candace, do you know something I don't?"

"I couldn't really tell you," she replied, "but I'll tell you that I have reason to believe—" At that moment, Ferb decided to come back inside. "Back so soon?" Candace asked.

"Adyson dropped by…" he said, clearly leaving the rest of his thought to be imagined. I shuddered, hating when Adyson decided that PDA was necessary. "I'm going to take a nap. You okay, Bella?"

"Yes, thank you, Ferb," I replied, standing. I walked up to him and gave him a hug, "Thank you for everything and I'm sorry I was a bit harsh earlier."

I felt his hand gently rub my lower back, which brought a smile to my face, "It's quite alright, Bella." With that, he kissed my temple and went upstairs.

"What were you saying, Candace?"

"I have reason to believe that good things would come from you telling him."

I sighed, "I don't know, Candace… Could I really be meant to be with the brother that I was so cold to as a child?"

"I mean, when we traveled to the future and met me and my kids…" Candace reminded me.

"Or Ferb," I quoted with a smile.

"Exactly."

From there, we moved onto talking about Candace's upcoming wedding. Things weren't particularly interesting until I helped set the table for dinner.

"Bella!" Adyson exclaimed, "I have missed you so much," she hugged me tightly. Phineas gave me a quick hug afterwards.

"It's been too long. How has everything been?"

"Busy but fantastic. Phin and I have had quite the freshman year. We're already the most popular couple up at school."

"Wonderful," I replied dryly, causing Ferb to chuckle.

"How are you and your man? Oh, darn it Adyson," she said to herself, "I forgot you broke up."

Phineas looked at me, "You had a boyfriend for a bit?"

"Not really," I replied, holding in the urge to quiver or cry, "I went on a few dates with a guy; it didn't go anywhere, though."

"Oh, that's too bad. I'm sure this summer will do you good in that area, though!"

Ferb choked on his water. "You okay, Ferb?" He gave me a thumb's up. "What do you mean, Phineas?"

"Well, y'know, lots of opportunities come up during the summer to admit longtime crushes," he replied, no longer looking at me.

"What the heck are you getting at, Phin?" Adyson replied, sounding angry.

"I just know something that likes Bella, that's all," he replied casually.

"Oh," was all Adyson had to say.

I chose to not question it further, but inside I was beaming. Maybe Ferb really does reciprocate my feelings. This day was becoming much better than it had begun.

Ferb's POV:

I could hardly believe Phineas was being so obvious about my feelings for Bella at this moment. So much for too much meddling being a bad thing; he was even worse than Candace! I almost pulled him out of the room to scold him, but figured that would be too obvious. Thankfully, Bella changed the topic, "Do you guys have any big summer plans?"

"I'm just hoping the Fireside Girls Troup 46231 reunion camping trip will actually happen this summer," Adyson replied.

"I do too. Ever since Milly moved it just hasn't been the same."

"Not to mention Gretchen going to college a year early."

Isabella chuckled, "A camping trip would be really nice. Katie might not be up to roughing it, though, ever since she decided her hair was infinitely more important than adventure."

I was glad to see someone liked Adyson besides Phineas. I suppose my attitude towards her had better improve. Her rough exterior may not appeal to me, however, there may be more than meets the eye. "Perhaps Phineas and I could invent a small machine to help with her hair woes if that will increase the likelihood of your trip happening," I offered.

Adyson stared at me as if I were roadkill that decided it wasn't quite ready for death, "You just said a full sentence!"

"That happens more often than you'd think," Phineas said.

"I mean, I know you've mentioned conversations you've had with Ferb, I just…I never thought I'd hear it for myself."

"I'm trying to be more open," I replied, feeling no need for further explanation.

"Oh, it's nice…" Adyson said.

The rest of dinner was uneventful and both Isabella and Adyson had to leave shortly afterwards, which gave me the opportunity to pull aside my brother, "What was _that_?"

"What are you talking about, Ferb?"

"You telling Bella that you know someone who likes her."

"I told that to Adyson, not Isabella."

"She was right there, Phineas. That was so embarrassing. I thought you realized that I want to handle this _on my own,_ but you went ahead and said something so obvious."

"You needed a push," he replied nonchalantly.

"Excuse me?"

"You needed a push, Ferb. You still need a push. I get that you don't think she's ready for this type of commitment, but I'm not sure what you're waiting for. I'm pretty sure Bella likes you every bit as much as you like her."

"I think she might too," I admitted, "but I cannot risk ruining our friendship until I know, Phineas. Please understand that."

"Alright, I can respect that, Ferb. I just hope you do something soon. You've been torturing yourself harboring your feelings for Bella for almost three years now."

"I know, Phineas…thank you." I walked away from him and up to our shared room. We still share it, but won't for long. I'll be moving into Candace's room once she gets married. I lied in bed, knowing Candace would probably be interrogating me soon, so I needed to rest up. She tends to end each day I see Bella asking a large quantity of questions regarding my progress.

I woke up the next morning, surprised that I had fallen asleep before Candace had the chance to question me. I walked downstairs to find Candace getting the egg carton out of the fridge, "Good morning, Ferb. Do you want some eggs?"

"That would be rather nice," I replied, sitting at the island.

"You fell asleep early last night; is everything alright?"

"Just tired."

"Seeing Ray really took a lot out of Isabella, didn't it?" I nodded. "I'm sorry that had to happen to her, but I really hope she'll figure out a way to cope with seeing him next year."

"I think it had a lot to do with how unexpected it was. She won't be alone in the fall, though."

"Did you tell her that you're transferring yet?"

"I haven't had the chance. I'm hoping it will be welcome news," I admitted.

"Why wouldn't it be? You're her best friend and by the beginning of the year, you'll be more."

I decided to ignore that comment, "She gets frustrated when I get too…overprotective."

"She'll get over that. She'll be thrilled you'll be at school with her, Ferb!"

"I certainly hope so, because Bella was a key factor in choosing my long term institution," I admitted. The decision to do my first year of college at the Tri-State Community College was a difficult one, which was only made worse when I realized how much Bella was struggling. I was glad Baljeet and Ginger were at a local institution, though third-wheeling could get a bit exhausting.

"You seem rather pensive, bro," Candace said quietly, putting a plate of eggs in front of me.

"It's nothing, Candace," I told her with a smile.

"Are you done being full of crap?" she asked with a chuckle, sitting next to me and, much to my chagrin, ruffled my hair.

 **So, I got a few follows last time...but no reviews. Review maybe? Thanks for reading! ~Lyddie**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here's chapter 3! And I finally got reviews! Thank you, JoyMatthews21 & Starlight Moon Midnight, for reviewing. The latter made me chuckle, so I decided to update right away (that won't always happen, but I figured for this time I'd do it). I hope you enjoy chapter 3.**

 **Anyways, disclaimer, disclaimer, disclaiming, etc, etc, etc...not my characters...disclaimer...etc...Okay, I'm done now, enjoy!**

Isabella's POV:

I woke up feeling very refreshed. I had texted Ferb last night and was nervous when he never responded, but I knew that emotional things drained him, so I decided to sleep without overthinking it. Boy, how I've matured in the past few years.

I checked my phone and smiled when I saw that Ferb had texted me back in his sleep. This happens occasionally and I could always tell, because it was the only time he didn't text in full sentences. I grabbed a dress from my closet and sighed, looking down at my wrist. I put the dress back and went to the bathroom to cover it before heading down to breakfast.

"Good morning, Isa!"

"Good morning, Mama."

"Isabella, you seem so distant lately; is something going on?"

I sighed, "It's been taken care of, Mama. I'm just…adjusting to normalcy again."

"Let me know if you want to talk about it," she replied.

"Of course, Mama."

Afraid she wouldn't leave the topic be, I pulled out my phone to text Ginger. The sooner I got out of the house, the better when it came to avoiding conversations with Mama: "Coffee date, Ging?"

It didn't take long for her to text back: "Yess, give me fifteen minutes and I'll be there!"

I smiled in victory. It was great timing too, as Mama asked, "Do you have any plans today, Isa?"

"Yes, actually, I'm getting coffee with Ginger. I need to get dressed, actually, I'm leaving soon."

"Oh how lovely! Let her know I say hello."

I ran upstairs to put my dress on. I French braided some of my hair across the front of my head and put a few bracelets on my left arm to help with coverage. I sighed, realizing that I couldn't hide this from my close friends forever. Ginger and Candace were sure to discover it eventually. Thinking about all the things Ray did to make made me quiver. I quickly wiped a tear from my eye before grabbing my purse and slipping into my favorite pair of sandals. I ran to the bathroom to put in my contacts and was off.

When I got there, Ginger was already sitting at our usual table, "Bella!" She got up to hug me, "I have missed you so much."

"I've missed you too, Ginger."

I went to order then joined Ginger back at the table. "Was the new roommate better?"

"Yeah," I smiled, "Molly's amazing. You'll actually get to meet her. She's coming to Danville for a week in June."

"Oh really? That's exciting!"

"Yes, she's actually Jeremy's cousin, so she'll be staying with me for the wedding and a week afterwards, as well," I explained excitedly. It was nice to be able to think about exciting things, since I have been so stressed and on edge lately. Ginger always had this way of calming me down, that's why she's the Fireside Girl I stayed the closest with.

"This is such an exciting summer in Danville! With two big weddings, it's hard to contain all the energy!"

I giggled, "Yeah, it is rather exciting! How is Stacy's wedding planning going?"

"We have all the outfits for the wedding party picked out. That was an interesting day…Jenny and I do _not_ have the same fashion sense…really, Jenny would be happy in a blue drape; the rest of us would like actual dresses."

I chuckled, "We had the same problem when picking out the bridal party dresses for Candace's wedding. Candace ended up telling her she can wear a flower crown at the reception to get her to agree to a normal dress."

"Wow. For such a peace loving girl, she sure is difficult," Ginger replied.

"Can I see a picture of the dresses for Stacy's bridesmaids?" I asked.

"Yes!" Ginger exclaimed, "Sorry, I'm really excited. It's so nice that Stacy and I have the same favorite color."

"Yeah, that would make things easier for you," I replied with a smile as I leaned over her phone to see the photo, "Oh those are so pretty. I love the bow!"

Ginger looked at me, "Well yeah! It's you and it's a bow; of course you like it…Speaking of you liking things…how's it going with Ferb?"

"I…it's about the same, I guess. Yesterday was a rough day, but he helped a ton."

"How so?"

"Well…I ran into Ray…at the bus station."

"Oh, that is rough…" Ginger agreed.

"I mean the Millersville bus station, Ginger. Not the one near school."

"Oh," she started, "wait, he's in the Tri-State area?"

"Yeah, his mom lives around here. But he…he, uh, tried to hug me." Ginger knew a lot about the Ray situation as well. In fact, Ginger was the only person I allowed to know. I told her about it as it was happening. She pep talked me into breaking it off. So in the case of Ray, she knows everything. She, Ferb, and Molly are the only people who know the details of what happened with Ray. **(A/N: I'm leaving this intentionally vague. It's up to reader interpretation what happened between Isabella and Ray).** So she understands exactly how bad it is for him to try to hug me.

"Oh, Bella, I'm so sorry! Are you doing alright today?" Ginger asked, reaching for my hand.

I momentarily flinched, but relaxed when she gave my hand a gentle squeeze, "Sorry, Ginger. But yeah, I'm doing better today. As I said, Ferb helped a lot. He just held me and listened. Calmed me down, just like he used to when it came to my crush Phineas."

"So, are you going to talk to him about it?"

"Ginger, look who you're talking to. Especially after everything with Ray, I just can't do that."

"Bella, there's a fundamental difference in character between Ferb and Ray. There's not even a comparison, so don't give me that. That's not what you're afraid of," Ginger said kindly, but firmly.

I took a sip of my coffee, "I just…I don't know if he likes me as much as I like him…" I admitted, "and if he doesn't and I say something…I don't want to ruin our friendship, Ging."

"You won't. He is crazy about you," Ginger insisted.

"How do you know that, Ginger?"

"You seem to forget that I'm dating one of his best friends," she replied knowingly.

I smiled, "Well, I'm waiting on Ferb. If he wants something to happen, he'll say something."

"He doesn't know if you're ready!" Ginger blurted out then slapped her hands over her mouth. Her eyes were like saucers.

"What?"

Ginger stood up and started pacing, "Oh, I wasn't supposed to tell you that. Heck, I wasn't even supposed to know that, but Baljeet and I have been trying to help you two, y'know, admit your feelings to each other…" she rambled, so quickly I could hardly understand her.

"Ginger!" I tried to interrupt to no avail.

"…so he's told me what Ferb has said about you, so I could try to subtly throw it into conversation…."

"Ginger!"

"…I've intentionally told him less about what you've said because we all know Baljeet can't be subtle, but now I blew it."

"Ginger!" this time I yelled. People surrounding us stared. "Sorry…" Ginger stopped rambling. "So you're saying you are one hundred percent sure that my feelings for Ferb are mutual?"

"Yes…" she admitted.

"This is wonderful!" I exclaimed.

"You're not mad that I meddled?" Ginger asked nervously

"I can't be," I declared, "Things might finally work out a bit for me. This is wonderful," I repeated, "Simply wonderful."

"I'm glad….and shocked…that you feel that way, but glad, definitely glad!" Ginger exclaimed.

Ferb's POV:

After breakfast, I went outside to see what Phineas was doing. When I got out there, Phineas was under the tree talking to a more nervous than usual looking Baljeet, "Oh, F-Ferb, I, uh, need to talk to you about something."

Right at that moment, Isabella and Ginger walked into the yard and Isabella said, "Hey Ferb! Hi Baljeet. Hi Phineas."

"Hey Isabella…" Baljeet said, still seeming nervous.

"How was your night, Ferb?" Isabella said, seeming…I couldn't quite place it, but she seemed lighter on her feet or words or…I really couldn't place what was different, but something was most certainly different with her. "You texted me in your sleep again," she told me with a giggle.

"Oh," I looked at my phone, "I suppose I did. I fell asleep without even trying, actually. So, it was quite nice. How about yours, Bella?"

"It was pretty good and this morning was really nice. I got coffee with Ginger," the aforementioned waved, "and it was lovely!" Isabella exclaimed.

Extra perky…Either someone gave her amazing news or something really bad happened and she's overcompensating to cover it up. "Bella, are you sure everything's alright?"

At that she giggled, "Why wouldn't it be, Ferb?"

"Just checking, I guess," I replied. That giggle made it seem like legitimate giddy. Isabella has always been horrible at fake giggling. She tried it far too many times after Phineas hurt her feelings in middle and early high school for me to not be able to distinguish the difference. I wonder what good news she heard.

"So, what are we doing today?"

"Once Adyson gets here, I was thinking we could work on our Celebration Response Machine for Candace's wedding!" Phineas explained.

"Celebration Response Machine…" Bella said, warily.

I caught onto her thought and finished, "Are you sure that's a good idea, Phineas?"

"Of course it is! It has multiple settings: bubbles, rice, fireworks!"

"I don't think Candace will appreciate your…well, our…love of explosives. Perhaps we should do something more…tame," I continued.

"Yeah…" Bella added on, "Phineas, you know Candace has never been the biggest fan of your, um, antics, right?"

Let's just say that argument (and afternoon) ended with Candace's wedding plans becoming much more interesting. It's a good thing she has tamed quite a bit since she graduated from high school.

My thoughts were interrupted by the still perky Isabella, "Do you want to go on a walk, Ferb?"

"That would be lovely, Bella," I replied with a smile. We walked out of the backyard and Bella had this hopeful glow in her eyes that I hadn't seen in years. "What is going on today, Bella?"

She chuckled nervously, "What are you talking about, Ferb?"

"You have been extra giddy all day. Either something is really wrong and you are trying to hide it or something really good happened; which is it?"

"I'm just in a really good mood today, Ferb. Nothing to it!" Bella said.

"You are hiding something," I replied smoothly. She smiled up at me shyly. It was so adorable, I could not help but let it go. I took her hand in mine, "I'm glad that yesterday did not put a damper on whatever is making today so special for you, Bella."

She smiled and blushed, "Thanks Ferb. Though the rest of yesterday was much better than its beginning. It turned out to be a pretty nice day."

"I am glad."

After our walk, during most of which we held hands, Bella had to go home for dinner since her mom had the evening off. I went back to the yard and Baljeet was still there, "I-I r-r-really need to talk to you, Ferb."

"What is wrong, Baljeet?"

"I-I m-m-may have told Ginger a little bit about, eh, your feelings for Isabella." I nodded. I was not pleased with the fact, but I was no less pleased than surprised. "That is not all," he continued, "she let it slip to Isabella. Isabella knows you like her."

"Oh," was all I said. No wonder she was so happy. Wait, I smiled broadly, "So, that is why she was so happy all day?"

"I would imagine so," Baljeet replied.

"Thank you for being honest with me, Baljeet. I have to go in for dinner, but…thank you." I walked inside and tried to hide the redness I could feel on my face. I had no idea how to hide how excited I was that Bella was that ecstatic about my feelings. Also, I had no idea what I should do about it. Now that Bella knows that…well, she does not know I am in love with her. Not even Phineas knows that. But she knows that I want to date her, for sure, which puts a lot of pressure on my shoulders to do something about it.

 **I didn't realize how short this chapter is...oops. I'm pretty sure the next one is longer. I have this written up until shortly before Candace's wedding. I wrote that all in about two days then hit writer's block, but after reading a ton of fanfic in the past week, I'm ready to keep writing.**

 **Short note: I know I kind of contradicted myself a bit with Ginger knowing everything, but I realized that Isabella is much too much like me (not because I wrote her that way, I hope) to not share her struggle with anyone and I've always liked the idea of Ginger being her best female friend, so I went for it. I might rewrite a couple sentences in chapter one to make that a bit smoother. I'll put an author's note in a later chapter if I decide to go that route.**

 **Please review!:) ~Lyddie**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello world, here's another update for you. Thank you for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter! Sorry I took a while, I am trying to figure out where I'm going with this story after the point I have written, and forgot to update even though this chapter has been written for weeks. I have a chapter and a half written after this one, or something like that. And I am working kind of strange hours, so I'm trying to find the energy to write this story and get back to an old one that hasn't been updated in over a year (but I'm going to work hard to have this finished by the end of this summer). Enjoy:) Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, just the story line (and Molly).**

Isabella's POV:

I was ecstatic after my wonderful day. The walk I took with Ferb was incredible, I could hardly believe that he held my hand! I had to talk to Ginger and Molly. After dinner, I went up to my room and created a group message to them: "Guys! Ferb and I went on a walk and he held my hand!"

Molly was the first to respond: "WHAT? That is AMAZING! Any other progress?"

Ginger replied shortly afterwards: "Awww, that is so cute! Bella, you didn't tell her about our conversation yet?"

Molly quickly replied: "WHAT CONVERSATION? TELL ME TELL ME TELL ME!"

I chuckled at Molly's antics: "Ginger found from an inside source (her boyfriend) that Ferb has confirmable feelings!"

If even possible, Molly replied quicker: "WHAT! I KNEW IT! ALL THOSE STORIES OF HIS OVERPROTECTIVENESS! OH MY GOSH, Y'ALL WILL BE SUCH A CUTE COUPLE!"

Ginger tagged on: "Jeet just texted me, he told Ferb that you know. Hopefully he'll say something to you soon. Especially since he's already holding your hand."

My insides were swelling. It had been such a wonderful day and maybe, just maybe, by the end of the week Ferb would be my boyfriend…

[THREE WEEKS LATER]

Well, Ferb didn't become my boyfriend by the end of that week or the next two. It was now the day Molly was arriving. I was a bit frustrated that he still hadn't said anything, but I was even more excited about the events of the next two weeks. Between the wedding and two whole weeks with Molly, I was filled with happiness. I heard a car drive up and I ran downstairs and out the door, "Molly!"

"Bella!" she exclaimed, "I'm so glad I'm here!" she got out of the car and hugged me.

"So there's no word from Ferb on the relationship front?"

"Shh, not so loud, Molly, he lives right across the street," I scolded.

She looked over at the Flynn-Fletcher residence and smiled, "So that's how you were able to hang out with them every single day of your childhood."

"That was part of it, yes," I replied, "Let me help you with your things."

We got her things out of the car and Molly started to tell me about the excitement of the beginning of her summer. Her family went on vacation to Italy, so hearing about that was exciting. That was part of the reason just Molly made it to the wedding. The other part was that she was the only person in her family who was close with Jeremy. She hung up her dresses in my closet and pulled her hair into a ponytail, "So when do I get to meet Ferb?"

"We can go over right now, if you'd like. With all the last minute wedding stuff, it'd be pretty hectic if we try to fit it in tomorrow," I said, leading her downstairs and across the street to meet my favorite Brit.

When we arrived, Phineas and Adyson were kissing under the tree. Adyson was always big on the physical aspects of relationships, but at least she was dating Phineas now, who's as gentle and good intentioned as they get. I faked a cough. "Oh, hey Bella!" Adyson said, as if we hadn't walked into anything awkward, "You must be Molly!"

"Yes," I said, "Molly, this is Adyson and Phineas."

She held out her hand to shake both of their hands, "It's nice to meet you."

"I wonder where Ferb went; he was just out here a few minutes ago," Phineas said, "I'll go get him!" and with that he ran inside. I chuckled at the continued oblivious nature of Phineas Flynn.

"Is he always like that?" Molly asked.

"Like what?" Adyson asked, sounding very defensive.

"In his own world, not quite having a grasp on reality," Molly explained, "it isn't a bad thing. In fact, it's kind of refreshing to see someone college-age have that outlook on life."

"Ah, yeah, that's why I fell for him," Adyson confirmed, then she did the strangest thing I could imagine: she winked at me.

Right as I was about to ask why she winked at me, Phineas walked out with Ferb following right behind him. "Hello Bella," Ferb said with his sweet smile.

"Hi Ferb," I walked to him, motioning for Molly to follow, "this is my roommate, Molly. Molly, this is…" My best friend? My almost boyfriend? My Ferb? "Ferb."

"It is delightful to meet you," Ferb said, shaking Molly's hand.

"And you, as well," she replied.

Ferb then took me by surprise and hugged me. I smiled at the random act and hugged back tightly. When he released me, I gave him my sweetest, brightest smile and asked, "What was that for?"

Ferb shrugged with a smile, "You haven't been around the past few days."

"Oh," I replied, "I mean, it's welcome…I was just…never mind…" I blushed and Ferb chuckled at me.

Ferb's POV:

Ever since I had found out that Bella knows that I have feelings for her, I have been, quite unfortunately, awkward. I know that she is happy about it, but I am still unsure how to respond to it. The past three weeks have been filled with awkward displays of affection; mostly to let Bella know that my feelings are definitely true even if I have yet to use words. So when she asked about the hug, I had no idea how to respond. I was glad that she was embarrassed too, not that I enjoy her embarrassment, but I was glad that I am not alone in my strange ways of showing my affections.

After Bella, Molly, and Adyson left, Phineas sat with his arms crossed smirking at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Why haven't you said anything yet? You saw how she reacted to finding out that you like her. You should just say something."

"I am not good at this, Phineas. Contrary to common belief, I am _not_ a lady's man. I can barely tell you how I feel about Bella without getting red…" I trailed off momentarily, "I cannot imagine how much of a fool I will be telling her."

At that moment, Candace walked out, "Ferb, I need to talk to you." I waved at Phineas and walked inside with Candace. She led me up to her room, "Sit." And so I sat. "You cannot keep that poor girl waiting. Have you even told her that you're coming to school with her in the fall?"

"No…" I admitted, "As I was just telling Phineas, I am not good at this kind of thing."

"You don't need to be, Ferb! You know how you feel and you've figured out how she feels, so just say something."

"It is not that simple," I replied.

"What are you afraid of, Ferb?" That question, though I have been asked it multiple times, is one that I always dread. It is not that I am afraid of rejection at this point. It is more a fear that once we start dating, Bella will realize that I am not what she thinks I am. "Ferb?" Candace started more gently, "It's okay to be afraid, y'know, I just don't think you need to be."

"I suppose not. Maybe at the rehearsal dinner we will get a moment," I resolved.

"Don't keep her waiting too long, Ferb. She wants this just as much as you do." And then she ruffled my hair. Again.

The next couple of days were eventful, but not particularly noteworthy. The bachelor party was fun enough, but the older guys were drinking a decent amount, which I have never been fond of being around. It was finally time for the rehearsal dinner and I felt about ready to burst. After Candace and I talked, I realized I was making myself—and more importantly, Isabella—miserable. So I resolved to talk to her tonight. I straightened my tie and walked downstairs to get to the church for the rehearsal.

"Oh Candace, I can't believe you're getting married tomorrow!" I heard mum crying.

I came downstairs to see Candace hugging mum's crying form and attempting to not roll her eyes, "It's okay, mom. I'll be living in Danville; you'll still see me all the time."

I place my hand on mum's shoulder, "Shall we head out now?"

"Yes, yes, Ferb, you are right. We'll be late if I keep crying. Heaven knows how tonight will go if we're late!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, let's go!" Candace insisted. Everyone left, but Candace waited to grab my shoulder, "You'll say something tonight?"

"If I get the chance, I will ask Bella to be my girlfriend tonight. At very least, she will know that we will be classmates again in the fall by the end of the night."

"Good," Candace said and kissed my cheek, "Love you, bro."

"I love you too, Candace," I replied, practically pushing her out the door.

When we arrived at the church, Bella was wearing a simple purple sundress, but I could not keep my eyes off of her; she was absolutely stunning, "Hello Bella," I greeted, kissing her hand.

She giggled, clearly noticing how astonished I was by her appearance, "Hello Ferb. You look very nice this evening."

I smiled and, while no one was watching, I kissed her cheek. She gasped quietly and I whispered in her ear, "You look absolutely beautiful."

"Thank you," she whispered back. Her cheeks were as bright pink as the dress she wore when we were kids.

After the rehearsal portion of the evening, we went to dinner, where I sat next to Bella and occasionally brushed her arm with my fingers, just to feel the pleased shiver that came as a response. The conversation mostly consisted of a few of us getting to know Molly better.

"So, Ferb," Molly, who sat at Bella's other side, started to ask, "where do you go to school?"

"That is actually an interesting question to ask," I started, "I went to Tri-State Community College for freshman year, but I've been meaning to tell this to Bella, actually, I will be transferring in the fall."

"You're transferring now?" Bella asked.

"Yes, I'll be joining you at Frankport, actually."

"You will?" Bella asked, excitedly.

"Yes, I have been meaning to tell you."

"Oh, this is wonderful!" she exclaimed.

Molly smiled, "This is really exciting. I'm looking forward to getting to know you better, Ferb."

"That will be quite lovely, Molly," I agreed.

After dinner, I realized that it was not too late, "Bella, would you like to go on a walk with me before calling it a night?"

She smiled up at me, "That would be lovely. Let me just tell Molly."

When she went to tell Molly, Phineas walked over and elbowed me lightly in the ribs, "Are you finally asking her, bro?"

"Yes, yes I am," I replied, using his old catch phrase.

"Excellent," he replied, "you'll let me know how it goes before we go to bed, right?" He looked almost like a small child in the candy store with his excitement.

"Do I even have a choice?" I asked, Phineas shook his head, because Bella was walked back toward us.

"Oh, hi Phineas."

"I will see you at home, Phineas," I told him, before taking Bella's hand in my own. The first few minutes were spent in a comfortable silence. "Are you having a good time with Molly and with Candace's wedding things?"

"It's been a lot of fun! I've really enjoyed having her and being involved in a wedding week has been so much fun. Candace even told me that I'm like the sister she's always wanted!" Bella's enthusiasm was always infectious. She shone brighter than anyone I have ever met and I loved hearing about her budding closeness with my sister.

"I am glad to hear it… It is a lovely night," I said, suddenly becoming nervous.

Bella saw right through this, "Is everything alright, Ferb?"

"I, yes, everything is fine," I replied, "I actually have a question for you." I knew I had to ask now, so I took a deep breath, "I hear that you already know this, but for quite some time I have wanted to further our friendship, Isabella." Her smile broadened, but she remained silent. "I am hoping that desire is mutual," I continued, still not entirely comfortable with the idea I was actually saying this out loud.

"Go on," she gently encouraged, sensing my nerves.

"My fondness for you has only grown in the past two years; will you be my girlfriend, Bella?" I finally asked.

Her smile broadened further still, which I had not previously thought possible, "Yes! That would be perfect!" she suddenly stopped and giggled, blushing, "I mean, yes, I'd really like that."

"You needn't be embarrassed, Bella," I told her, "it is not as if I have not done my fair share of embarrassing things these past few weeks."

She giggled, "I'm glad you are okay with my awkwardness."

"Always," I replied, "I am sorry to keep you waiting for so long after you found out. I was rather nervous about asking you."

"You were?" she asked.

"Yes, I was."

She smiled, "Well, I'll forgive it, because nervous Ferb is really adorable."

I grimaced slightly at the idea of being adorable, but the smile on Bella's face was enough to make me smile too, "Adorable, eh?"

"Very," she confirmed, "Though confident Ferb is also quite adorable. And…well, yeah," she stopped and mumbled, "you're always adorable."

"As are you, Bella," I smiled at her, glad that we could finally have this conversation and get over the awkward interactions.

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter and yay Ferbella! Yay adorable! :) Please Review ~Lyddie**


	5. Chapter 5

**Ughh, I'm sorry this took so long. I had most of this written, but got stuck with how to write the wedding. My friend gave me a bit of advice and I still didn't get around to actually writing it. I'm not going waste any more of your time with this pre-chapter author's note besides telling you that I really hope to be quicker with the next update (especially now that I got this chapter that didn't want to be written completed). Anyways, as always, I don't own these characters except Molly and Ray. I hope you enjoy this chapter. I wish Ferbella was canon. Okay:**

Isabella's POV:

I was a bit shocked with how quickly I was able to make flirtatious quips to Ferb. I couldn't stop smiling whenever I thought about the fact that he's my boyfriend. His thumb brushed against my hand and sent shivers down my spine, "How do you do that?"

"How do I do what?" he asked with a smirk.

I stopped walking, making him stop beside me if he wanted to keep a grip on my hand. He took two steps back after the force stop, so he was right next to me again and gave me a questioning look. All I did in response was standing on my tip toes to kiss his jawline. I heard him take a sharp breath inward. I giggled in response, "That."

"You're evil," he replied, smiling at me.

"I know," I replied and started to skip away…well, I tried to skip away, Ferb had other plans. He tickled me mercilessly. "Ferb!" I laughed.

An elderly woman came out of a nearby house and started yelling at us, so Ferb stopped and we quickly made our way to a different street. When we got back to our houses, I sighed reluctantly. "What's wrong, Bella?"

"It's nothing really. It's just…this was a lovely walk; I don't want it to end," I replied honestly. Ferb kissed my cheek and smiled at me. "Good night, Ferb," I said, returning the smile.

"Good night, Bella."

I practically skipped inside and closed the door behind me with a contented sigh. "How was your walk, Bella?" Molly asked causing me to jump.

I smiled and giggled slightly, "It was…really nice."

"Ginger is already here. She went to shower, though…you're going to make me wait until she gets out to tell me, aren't you?"

I nodded my head with a smile. Ginger was invited to the wedding, but not in it, so I haven't seen much of her this week, which is why we decided a pre-wedding sleepover was a good idea. Candace was thinking about having all the bridesmaids over, but the week was so hectic, she decided it would be best if just Stacy stayed. "Why didn't she shower while we were at the rehearsal dinner?"

"She was with Baljeet," Molly answered.

"Ah," I replied, "I need some tea." I walked to the kitchen and put the tea kettle on the burner. I got out my tea pot and put two tea bags in it. I ran my hand over the tea pot and smiled. Ferb had bought it for me the last time he visited his grandparents in England. It was covered with flowers and butterflies.

Five minutes later, Ginger came running downstairs, "I heard you went on a walk with Ferb!"

"That I did," I replied with a smirk.

"What happened?" they both asked.

I burst into a fit of giggles, "I'm his girlfriend!"

"Yes!" Ginger and Molly both exclaimed.

"I knew it was only a matter of time after you found out before he asked," Ginger said with a grin, "Maybe I didn't mess up after all."

Ginger pulled me into a hug and I replied, "No, you didn't, Ginger. It was a great thing that you let his feelings slip."

We all got a cup of tea and ran upstairs, which led into Molly and Ginger bombarding me with questions.

"How did he do it?"

"Did he kiss you?"

"Are you guys going on a date soon?"

"How do you feel?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" I exclaimed, "Slow down. This just happened; I'm still in my own little world a bit. I can't keep up with all these questions," I admitted.

"Will you tell us about it?" Ginger asked more calmly.

The more calmed atmosphere gave me a chance to catch my breath and actually reflect on what had just happened. I smiled as I thought of the way Ferb took my hand and gently rubbed my hand with his thumb. I could hardly believe this all happened. Ferb's gentle way of handling me and firm protectiveness were just a few of things that made him so attractive, not to mention how nervous he got asking me to be his girlfriend. The thought of it alone sent me into a fit of giggles.

"Bella!" I suddenly heard Molly exclaim, "You were lost in your own world again. Can you pleeeease tell us what happened with Ferb beyond 'he asked me to be his girlfriend'?" she begged, the last part being said in a rather good imitation of me.

"Okay, okay," I said, settling on my bed, "It was so sweet. As you know, he pulled me aside after dinner to ask me to go on a walk. He immediately took my hand and we walked for a bit in silence…a comfortable silence, y'know, since it is Ferb we're talking about. After that," I continued, "he asked how I was enjoying this week and we chatted about that for a bit, then he got all…adorably nervous."

"I can hardly imagine a nervous Ferb," Ginger quipped.

"He made a comment about the weather to change the subject to asking me to be his girlfriend," I elaborated.

"He didn't!"

"He did," I nodded, "I saw right through it, of course. I asked what was wrong and he nervously continued and told me that he likes me. I had to encourage him to finish, then he asked me to be his girlfriend."

"What'd you say, Bella?" Molly asked, "Did you squeal?"

"No, of course not…" I lied.

"Bella…" Ginger said.

"A little, I was mostly just over-exuberantly rambling, though," I admitted sheepishly.

"I have a pretty clear picture of that in my head," Ginger told me.

I chuckled, "Of course you do."

A few hours later, Ginger was asleep and Molly was giving me a questioning look. "What?" I whispered to her.

"Are you okay, Bella?" she asked, just as quietly.

"Why wouldn't I be? Everything is going great."

She gave me a skeptical look, "Have you hurt yourself since coming home?"

"No, I have not," I replied honestly.

"Just…after you told me about your run in with Ray, I've been worried. Very worried. I just want to make sure you're okay, Bella. You're my best friend."

I smiled, "Thanks Molly. But, honestly, I am fine. Ferb knows now…"

"He knows? I thought you weren't going to tell him."

"I didn't tell him," I explained, "he felt the scars. He forced it out of me, lovingly, after that. It wasn't like I could hold it after he felt it, anyways…"

Molly sighed, "And you are doing well…not worrying about things that could happen or have happened?"

I groaned, "I need sleep. Can we stop talking about this, please?"

"Sure, goodnight, Bella."

"Goodnight, Molls," I replied, burying my head into my pillow.

Ferb's POV:

The morning of Candace's wedding was one of the weirdest mornings of my life thus far. I woke up to the sound of Candace and mum having a rather loud discussion about flowers. I groggily made my way downstairs for breakfast and was shocked to see that even Phineas looked groggy, "What time is it?"

Phineas checked his watch, "Twenty after six." I groaned. "Don't worry," he continued, "dad agreed to start breakfast as soon as you got up, since mom and Candace are being so loud, he figured it'd be soon. I'll go get him." I nodded. "Oh, and the coffee is already made," he said before running off to find dad.

I poured myself a cup and sat at the island. I looked out the kitchen window at Bella's house and smiled. I knew I would be getting interrogated soon. Phineas said he was going to do it last night, but he was distracted by a Stumbleberry Finkbat marathon when I got home and stayed up half the night watching it, which must be why he was actually cranky when I found him.

A minute or so after Phineas left, Candace sat next to me, "Sorry to wake you…the florist decided 6AM was a reasonable time to call and inform us that the roses didn't come in."

"Oh," was all I said in response, not wanting to ask how she felt about it since she seemed reasonably calm at that moment.

"During the course of the phone call, they found them…" she explained, sensing my hesitancy, "I'm not really sure how they lost twelve dozen roses or why the arrangements aren't completed by now, but I guess they know what they're doing…who am I to question their process?"

I nodded, "That's good to hear."

"So, how did your walk with Isabella go?"

"Phineas will be back soon and will ask too…" I replied, hoping she caught on my silent to wish to have to tell this story as few times as possible.

Right on cue, Phineas came back in with dad in tow, "So, Ferb, how did your walk with Bella go?"

I gave Candace a knowing look before answering, "It went well. I asked, she said yes, Bella's my girlfriend." Candace elbowed me in the ribs. "What?"

"That was a horrible explanation, Ferb. I know you're a man of few words, but seriously!"

I chuckled, "Revenge for you waking me up so early."

"Hey, I didn't wake you up!" Phineas shot back, "I want you to actually tell us something we don't know too."

"You should know enough about my sense of humor by now to realize I would never have any conversation about Bella with such lack of emotion. I was only teasing our dear sister," I replied.

"So…?" Phineas prompted.

I gave a more detailed account of our walk, blushing the entire time. Unfortunately, Phineas noticed and spent most of breakfast laughing at my expense. Every time I thought about Bella, a large goofy smile was always brought to my face. This has been true for years, but it was even more noticeable now that I could call her mine.

After a few hours of getting ready, Phineas coming into my room worrying about his hair (I did say it was a strange morning), and almost choking myself with a bowtie we were finally ready to set out to get photos taken. Phineas and I rode separately, so we could get photos with Jeremy and the other groomsmen. I never saw the point of the bride and groom not seeing each other before the wedding, but this was Candace, so I silently went with it. All I really wanted, however, was to see Bella. I was sure she looked absolutely astonishing—of course, she always did.

When we arrived at the church, I decided to seek out Bella, since I knew Jeremy had no need for me at this point. The ceremony was forty minutes away from the time we arrived. I knocked on the door of the room the ladies were in. "Who is it?" I heard Candace asked.

"Ferb," I answered. When she gave the okay, I walked in and had to stifle a gasp. Bella smiled shyly at me. "Hello Bella, you look absolutely beautiful."

"Good to see who's of value here," Candace said.

"I, uh…"

"Ferb, relax, I'm messing with you."

"I'll be right back, Candace," Bella told her, then took my hand, leading me out of the room. "Hey Ferb," Bella said with a shy smile once we were outside of the room, "your bowtie is crooked," she fixed it. "I'm assuming that's not why you were looking for me?"

"No, it wasn't."

"So, why did you come?" she asked with a smirk.

"I wanted to see you before you walk down the aisle, that's all," I smiled at her, "did you sleep well?"

"Yes, after Ginger and Molly stopped interrogating me."

"Interrogating?" I asked with my eyebrow raised.

"Yes, don't tell me you didn't get interrogated about our walk at all?"

"Oh, I did," I replied, "I was able to avoid it until breakfast, though."

"I heard you were awakened early by today's crisis," she said, "so I don't think you really got the better deal."

I chuckled, "Not exactly, no." I kissed her cheek and she blushed. "You really do look astonishing."

"Thanks Ferb, you look pretty great yourself."

I smiled. Right as I was about to kiss her on the lips for the first time, I heard Candace yell, "Isabella, I need you!"

"I guess I gotta go, Ferb," Bella said.

"I guess so," I replied.

"See ya in a half hour," she said as she skipped back into the room.

A half an hour later, I stood at the front of the sanctuary. As the bridesmaids walked down the aisle I maintained a neutral expression. However, when Isabella emerged, my breath was taken away and a smile found its way to my face. Of course, I had already seen her earlier, but the sight of her walking down the aisle towards me, well, technically towards Jeremy, was completely different. Though we had only started dating less than a day before, I was captivated by the mere thought of marrying Bella.

So lost in my thoughts, I had completely missed Stacey walking down the aisle and the music changed for Candace to enter. My sister looked lovely. I glimpsed over and noticed that Jeremy was crying. The smile still stayed on my face, though this time for my dear sister. She was crazy in her teen years, but my love for her has only grown with the years. When she made it up the aisle, my dad hugged her tightly and whispered, "Though you are not my biological daughter, I love you as though you were. I'm very proud of you, my dear Candace."

"Dad…" she whispered, clearly attempting to hide her tears, "you've been my true father since the day you married mom. I love you too."

My dad clapped Jeremy on the shoulder and said, this time loud enough for the whole sanctuary to hear, "I couldn't have chosen a better husband for my daughter. Welcome to the family." The collective 'aww' that sounded filled the room and distracted Candace from any worry she had previously held onto.

The introduction to the service was much too drawn out for my liking. I tuned it out and remained so until it was time for the vows.

Jeremy smiled at Candace and unfolded the paper that the vows he wrote were on, "Candace, you are the highlight to my life. Each day, I wake up with a smile because I know you are mine. My smile has never been bigger than it was this morning, as I knew I would finally be taking you as my wife today. I had to rewrite that line, because it previously stated that my brightest morning smile was the morning after you screamed yes seven times to my proposal," Jeremy was forced to pause as everyone in the room chuckled. I smiled, realizing that I very much felt the same way about Isabella as Jeremy does for Candace. This thought startled me. Could I really be in love with Bella already? As Jeremy continued, my thoughts stayed on Bella, "You definitely have your quirks, but even more than that, Candace, you have your heart. You are passionate about everything you set your mind to and that is the very thing I first fell in love with about you. I have never met someone so beautiful, determined, and inspiring. I am so glad that I get to spend each day of the rest of my life falling more in love with you. I promise to stand by your crazy ideas, to protect you, and to always love you for the rest of my days."

I felt a pull on my stomach. Glancing over at Bella only made it worse. She smiled at me with a faint blush on her cheeks that I could guarantee was not make-up. If the hotness I felt in my ears was any indication, I probably looked like Christmas with my green hair and all. I shook my head and forced myself to listen to Candace's vows.

"Jeremy, I'm amazed at how far we have come. I'll be the first to admit that my crush on you before we started dating was borderline obsessive, but that never bothered you because you saw my true feelings beneath my craziness. From the time we started dating, you've been my rock. You have found ways to calm me down when I'm angry or scared and you read through everything I overanalyze and help me see clearly. Throughout the years, you have always been the first person to notice when something is off with me and have fought tooth and nail to make sure I get through whatever it is however silly it ends up being. You continue to make my dreams come true each day and I'm so glad that our relationship has exceeded my expectations in every way. I love you so much and promise to put my love for you above any crazy plan I have in mind, forever."

The next few minutes were filled with 'aww's, rings, and kissing. The room was erupting in cheering as Candace and Jeremy walked up the aisle. The rest of us soon followed. I was Bella's escort and she gave me a knowing smirk, "What?" I asked.

"You seemed to really like the vows," she said, blushing again.

"You did as well," I quipped.

We were out of the sanctuary at this point and she smiled, "Yes, yes I did."

I wasn't sure how to respond, so I just gave her a lopsided grin, before we were called to get ready for pictures.

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I got a request to make my chapters longer and I'll see if I can do that, but since I'm so bad at updating and I don't have anything written past this currently, I'm not going to make any promises about chapter length. I try my best to make my chapters a decent length with good transition points. I have a few ideas going through my head for the reception, but I'm not entirely sure about it yet. Let me know if you have any ideas. Also, after this point, this story might be skipping around time-wise a bit, but it depends on which idea for Molly I end up deciding on. I have a few things for her in my head as well and I'm not entirely sure which one I want to go with. As always, please review and I'm always happy to hear what you want out of this story, because maybe it will give me inspiration. ~Lyddie**


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